Sound reproducing apparatus



Sept. 20, 1932. w. R. OYSTON 1,378,311

SOUND REPRODUCING APPARATUS Filed April'll. 1950 I c I Patented Sept. '20, 1932 UNITED STATES PATE NT OFFICE I WILLIAM ROBERT oYsroN, or LoNnoN, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TO coN'rI'NUoUs unmo- PHONES LIMITED, or LoNnoN, ENGLAND,A narrrsn JOINT-STOCK comm Sb'UNID BEPRODUCIIN'G APIPARATUS Application filed April 11, 1930, Serial No. 443,382, and in Australia Kay 1, 1829.

This invention relates to sound reproducing apparatus such as talldng machines, and, more particularly to machines of the magazine player type. I

A machine of this class is described in my pending patent application Serial No. 260,- 378, filed March 9th,1928, according to which vertically disposed record discs, are trans? ferred one at a time and by rolling them upon 10' edge, from a transversely movable magazine to a vertical turntable, each disc being played thereon while rotating in a vertical plane; at the completion of the playing, the record disc .is returned by rolling back to the magazine prior to the next record being trans ferred therefrom to the turntable In my said patent application, means are described for correctly positioning record discs of different diameters upon the turn table of the machine, comprising a movable platform supported at one end by a depressible shaft and at the other end by an adjustable stopor stops on a depressible rod, with a radial arm adapted to insert a spring-controlled centering pin through the central aperture in the record into a corresponding aperture or recess in the turntable, the arangement being such that the platform is moved out of contact with the edge of the aorecord after the latter has been secured in position on'the turntable.

The present invention has for its main ob -jects to provide improved and simplified means for positioning records of difi'erent diameters upon. the turntable, to dispense with the complex movement of the platform in the above arrangement, and to enable the positioning and the securing ofthe record disc to be performed by the centering pin 40 (vivhich engages the central aperture in the 1sc. Another object of the invention isto pi'o- .vide means for regulating the initial position of the reproducer to suit the size of record to be played, which has hitherto been controlled by the movement of the depressible platform; with this object in view, the invention provides a mechanism controlled by the size of the record to be played but operated by the movemenwie centering pin, whereby e reference to the the turntable.

' tion.

spectiYely;

initial position of; the reproducer is regulated.

The invention is hereafter described with accompanying drawing, in which Fi re 1 is a diagrammatic front view showing the record-magazine and the vertical turntable of the machine.

Figure 2 is a side view in part-sectional elevation and on a larger scale, showing the turntable with a record in playing'position thereon, held by the centering pin.

Figure 3 is a detail, corresponding to the right hand portion of Figure 1, showing a large size record rolled into position before- Figure 4 is a detail similar to Figure 3, showing the parts at a later stage of opera Figure an enlarged view of the centering pin employed,

Referring to Figure 1, the records a a are shown stored in a magazine 6 which brings the records successivelyinto position for rolling by the transfer arm 0 out of their respective compartments in the magazine into a position in front of therota-table turntable 03; the record so transferred rolls over a fixed pad 6 and settles down in the gap between this pad and a corresponding pad 0 towards the other side of the turntable. These pads e e are spaced at a suitable distance apart, say six inches, at the same level, and at equal distances from the vertical 'diameter of the turntable d, so that the rolling disc settles down in the picking-up posi-. tion between the two pads with its own aperturein alignment with the said diameter. and vertically below the aperture or recess (5 in the turntable. This ensures'the ver-' tical alignment of'the center of the-record disc with that of the turntable before the mechanism commences to function to pick up the disc and mount it uponthe turntable.

According to the size-of the record disc, its 7 position in front of the turntable will vary as indicated for example in Figure 1. at a for 1 a ten-inch disc, and in Figure 3 at a for a 1 twTve-inch -disc,the central apertures in the two discs being represented at o and a re s In order then to bringthe disc.

\ into playing vertical lifting movement of about one and a half inches will be required in the first case, and of'about one-quarter inch in the second case, such lifting movement being provided by, a vertical arm f arranged in front of the With discs of the two customary sizes, viz. ten-inch and twelve-inch diameter, and the '15 centering supports e e? placed at about six inches apart, the difference in height of the central apertures in two different sized discs will be approximately one and-a uarter the smaller disc. Consequently the vertical movement of the centering pin 9 need not greatly exceed oneand a half inches, or less than half the diameter of the usual lain i. e. ungrooved circle in the middle 0 the' disc, and the centering pin need never come into contact with the'recording grooves uppn the outer part ofv the disc.

The arm f is pivoted at its lower end by a 1n ro dk ,about a fulcrum h by the engagement of a cam member 41 secured" to the main controlling shaft j of'the machine, which cor responds to the. oscillating horizontal shaft 18 of mylpending application aforesaid. The vertical arm I is acted upon by a spring 70' fixed tothe lever 72. and its p1vot movement about the pin f is regulated by stops f f, so that in the normal position of the I parts the centering pin 9 is held clear away 40 from the turntable d to allow the entrance of the disc (1 coming from the magazine];

When the disc has rolled into place and settledv down in vertical alignment with the turntable, restingon the pads e e in front of the latter, the movement of the controlling shaft 7' causes its came to rock the lever In. so as to bring the vertical-arm 7 forward against the record disc a; as soon as the centering pin g contacts with the disc, as shown in dotted lines in Figure 2, the movement 1 becomes vertical and upward, due to' the yield of the connecting spring k; When the pin reaches the central aperture 0 in the disc, the spring k'causes the arm f to push the pin 9 through this aperture and .against the surface of the turntable-d, the movement then again becoming vertical and upward until the pin enters the recess d at the center of the turntable, at which position (Figure 2) the movement of the arm 1' ceases.

To provide effective holding pressure upon the centering pin 9 when it has secured the record a to the turntable, the cam member 1'; .on theicontrolling shaft i may be provided a with aroller l which in approaching its final position upon the turntable, a:

inches, allowing for the deeper setthng of to a horizontal lever k which can be position engages with a cam'piece or finger m also pivoted at f on. the end of the horizontal lever h; the said cam piece or finger m is connected to the vertical arm f by another spring n, which is thus placed under tension to increase the ressure at the cen-' tering pin 9 in the wor ing position. One or more sprin s may alsorbe arranged for example at p etween the horizontal lever k and the controlling shaft 7', to balance the weight of the parts to be lifted.

The restoration of the centering pin and its associated parts to the normal position is effected by the controlling shaft j-which,

after the playing of the record, allows the lever 72. to rock back upon its pivot k in a counter-clockwise direction (as viewed in Figure 2). The recess d in the turntable is coned or countersunk as indicated at d in Figure 2, to facilitate the'withdrawal of the pin 9 therefrom, after which the disc is lowered gently down on to its supporting pads e e by the centering pin g, the point of which remains pressed against the face of the turntable until at the end of its descent it moves back away from the turntable, as the stops 7 f operate to limit the pivotal movement of the vertical arm, leaving the record disc restingon "the pads.

11 order to allow the centering ping to withdraw smoothly from the record a and turntable d, it is preferably articulated to the vertical arm, with suitable stops to limit the tilting movement. Fgr-example a cylindrical sockket g? pivoted t its base by a horizontal gudgeon or knuck e joint g between the flanges of a channel sectionflxrti'cal arm 7, may be controlled by adjustable set screws g? g" passing through the wetter back of the channel section, as shown'in-Figure 2, these screws being arranged "one' above and one below the joint pin 9 so as to engage the base of the socket'g in its respective limiting po-' sitions; the centering pin 9 is held in the socket by a set screw 9' engaging a circumferential groove g therein, and the free end of the pin is reduced by a'frusto-conical portion g? to a cylindrical point 9 with a round ed extremity g", as seen in Figure 5. The pin is thus revoluble in the socket 9 which forms a bearing for the pin,.so as to avoid wear of BIL the record aperture (2 and of the pointed end.

of the pin during playing.

It will be noted that the record disc is brought into engagement with the revolving turntable by a relatively light pressure which is subsequently increased by the action of the roller 1; the engagement therefore takes place gradually in the-manner of a friction .clutch. so thatsthe inertia ofthe disc places no suddenlo ad' upon the driving motor or mechanism.-

The cam member '5 operating the rocking lever h is preferably adjustable to secure accurate positioning of the disc a upon the turntable; for examplethe controlling shaft may befitted with a lever arm upon which a slotted cam plate z" is mounted by a screw j passing through the slot 5 so that the cam plate can be set outwards inorder to increase the movement. The roller Z mentioned above for providing increased spring pressure is preferably also mounted on the adjustable cam plate 2', as seen in Figure 2. I

In the machine described in mypending application SerialNo. 260,378, filed Marcn 9th, 1928, provision is made for regulating the position of the sound box at the start of the playing to suit the size of the record mounted upon the turntable; inthe arrangement described, this regulation is controlled by the v preferably employed a mechanism controlled by the arrival of a large-size record in posi tion before theturntable and operated by the upward movement of the centering pin before it reaches the central aperture in the record disc, that is, at a time when the centering pin is rising idly; the load upon the driving motor is therefore better distributed throughout the operation of the machine.

As indicated in Figure 1, the spindle 1' is provided with a stop arm 7 corresponding tothe element 131 in my pending application aforesaid and adapted to engage a projection r corresponding to the projection 132 in my aforesaid application, regulating the initial position of the tone arm and sound box (not shown) when returned at the con- .clusion of the playing of a record; this spindle 1' is provided with a second. arm 8' engaging below afixed rail 23 fitted with an adjustable screw t or the like for determining the exact position'ofthe spindle r, and

therefore of the stop-arm 1', for regulating the initial position to which the tone arm will be returned. A crank u secured upon the spindle 1' carries pivoted at u a thrust rod owhich lies against a fixed stop m the center of gravity of this rod being below its pivot u. In the normal position (shown in V Figure 1). the rearwardly cranked upper end '0 of the rod '0 is clear of the edge of an incoming disc a of the smaller size, but this end '0 will be engaged by the edge of. a larger disc a when resting on the pads e 6 as shown I in Figure 3. By such engagement the rod o is rocked to bring its lower and forwardly cranked end '2; towards'or into'contact with the vertical side of the arm 7' and just above a projection f on the latter. When the 'arm f begins its upward movement, as already described, the projection f engages the cranked end '0 of the rod and forces it to rotate the crank 10 into the position shown in Figure 4 the upper end 0 of the rod being position. It will be seen upon close inspection of Figure 4, that the arm f has not yet completed its upward movement, the record disc (1 having still to be lifted a small 'disstance to clear the pads ee and to bring its central aperture 0 into alignment with the turntable recessd.

At the termination of the playing of the record, the parts return to normal position,

the rod '0 falling back to the position of Fig. 1 as soon as the large-size recorda has been removed to the transfer arm 0, and the sound box moves back to its position for en aging a smaller record; this is. of advantage in connection with. the automatic changing of the needle, as described in my pending application aforesaid, since the means for the dis-- charge of worn needles will only have to operate in one position of the sound box. If the next record to be played is of thesmaller size, no further movement of the rod '0 nor of the spindle '1' will take lace, the sound box remaining in position or engaging the smaller record, but if another large-size record is to be played, the sound box regulatingstop-arm 1- will be adjusted afresh by described.

in use, by a simple controlling movement of a movement of the spindle 1" as already the rod '0, the power for shifting the'other parts of the mechanism being provided by the movement. of the centering pin arm under the operation of the driving motor.

What I claim is 1. In a sound-reproducing apparatus com-- prising a vertically positioned turntable, means for centering a record disc upon the turntable, said centering means comprising supports on which the record settles on its edge, with its vertical diameter in line with the center of the turntable, a .pin displaceable in a substantially vertical plane passing through the center of the turntable, said pin adapted to pass into the central aperture of the record, and means for raising said pin together with the record to a position coaxial with the turntable. v

2. In a sound-reproducing apparatus comprising a vertically positioned turntable, a

magazine for record discs adjacent said turntable, and means for rolling a record said centering means comprising a pair of supports on which the record settles with its vertical diameterin line with the ."center of no i the turntable, a pin displaceable in a substantiallyvertical plane passing through the center of the turntable, said pin adapted to pass into the central aperture of the record, and means for raising said pin together with the record to a position coaxialwith the turntable.

3. In a sound-reproducing apparatus, comprislng a vertically positioned turntable, means for centering a record disc upon the turntable, comprising a pair of supports on which the record disc settles on edge with itsvertical diameterin line with the center of the turntable, a pin dis laceable in a plane containing said vertical diameter, means for bringing said pin into contactwith said record, and means for causing said pin upon reaching the central aperture in said record to pass through said aperture and to carry said record to a position coaxial with the turntable. a

4. In a sound-reproducing apparatus, com- I axial with the turntable.

5. In aTsound-reproducing apparatus, comprising a vertically positioned turntable, a magazine for record discsadj acent said turntable, and means for rolling a record disc on its edge from said magazine to a position in front of said turntable, thecombination of supportingmeans on which the record disc settles with its vertical diameter in line with the center of said turntable, and means for lifting the record disc from said supporting means to a position coaxial with said turn-. table, said lifting means comprising a member adapted to pass into the central aperture inthe record disc, means for bringing said member into engagement with said record disc below the aperture, and means for displacing said member upwards until it comes into line with the aperture, said displacing means then acting to lift said member together with said record disc to said coaxial position.

6. In a sound-reproducing apparatus, comprising a vertically-positioned turntable, a magazine'for record discs adjacent said turntable, and means for rolling a record disc on its edge from said magazine to a position in front of said turntable, the combination of supporting means on which the record disc settles with its vertical diameter in line with the center. of said turntable and with its central aperture at a lower level than the center of said turntable, and means for lifting the record disc from said supporting means to a position coaxial with the turntable, said lifting means coming into contact with the record disc at a level not higher than the central aperture of the smallest record disc to be employed withsaid turntable, when settled upon said supporting means.

'7. In a sound-reproducing apparatus, comprising a vertically-positioned turntable, a reproducer associated with the turntable, a magazine for record discs of varying sizes adjacent said turntable, and means for rolling a record on its edge from said magazine to a position in front of the turntable, the

combination of supporting means on which the rolling record disc settles with its vertical diameter in line'with the center of said turntable. means for lifting the record disc from said supporting means to a position coaxial with said turntable, and means operated by said record lifting means for regulating the-initial position of said reproducer in agreement with the size variation of the record disc.

8'. In a sound-reproducing apparatus, comprising a vertically-positioned turntable, a reproducer associated with the turntable, a magazine for record discs of varying sizes adjacent said turntable, and means for rolling a record on its edge from said magazine to a position in front of the turntable, the combination of a pair of supports between which the record disc settles down with its vertical diameter in line with the center of the turntable, a centering pin displaceablein a plane containing said diameter, said pin adapted to pass into the central aperture of the record, means for lifting said centering pin together with the record to a position coaxial with the turntable, and means operated by the displacement of said centering pin for regulating the initial position of said reproducer to suit the size of the record.

9. In a sound-reproducing apparatus, com prising a vertically-positioned turntable and means for receiving a record disc rolled on its edge to a position in front of the turntable, the combination of means for causing said record disc to stop with its central aperture vertically below the axis of the turntable, and

means for lifting the record disc to a position coaxial with the turntable, said lifting means comprising a rocking lever, a substantially vertical arm jointed to one end of said lever, anarticulated pin carried at the top of said vertical arm, and means for controlling the pivotal movements of said arm and pin inrelation to said lever wherebythe rocking of the lever produces first the contact of said pin with the face of the record disc below its central aperture, next the vertical travel of said pin along a radius of said disc, then the engagement of said pin in said central aper ture, next the lifting of said disc by a vertieal travel of said pin along a radius of said turntable, and lastly the engagement of said pin at the center of said turntable.

10. In a sound reproducing apparatus, comprising a vertical turntable, means for positioning a record disc upon the turntable, comprising supporting means on which the record disc settles in front of the turntable, a centering pin adapted to engage the central aperture in the record disc, and means for lifting said pin substantially vertically along a diameter of the record disc until the pin reaches the central aperture in the latter,

said lifting means then causing the pin to move forward into the aperture in the disc and to continue its vertical movement together with the disc until it reaches and engages the central recess in the turntable. v

11. In a sound reproducing apparatus comprising a vertically positioned turntable, the combination of a vertical arm arranged in front of the lower half of the turntable, a

record centering pin carried by said arm, a substantially horizontal lever to which said arm is vpivoted at its lower end, a cam secured to the main controlling shaft and adapted to rock said lever, a spring actingupon said 20 vertical arm to determine the pressure of the centering pin against the record, and means for regulating the initial position of the sound box to suit the size of the record disc in use, said means being .controlled by the arrival of a large-size record in position before the turntable, operated by the upward movement of said centering pin before it reaches the central aperture in the record, and including a spindle adapted to regulate the initial position of the sound box, a cranl:

secured upon said spindle, a thrust rod pivoted to said crank, and a driving projection on' said verti a1 arm, the rocking of said thrust rod by the arrival of a large-size rec- 0rd bringing it into position for operation by said pro ection, whereby said spindle is 1'6- tated during the rise of said vertical arm.

In testimony whereof I have afixed my signature.

a WILLIAM ROBERT QYSTON. 

